Photos Courtesy of Gary Swardt
Gary at home with a 32 Battalion Flag.
“This was taken outside Buffalo, the shanty-town in the Caprivi strip where we lived when not on operations.”
Vice: How did 32 Battalion come into existence?
Gary Swardt: What was the ethnic makeup of the group?
When you started in 32 Battalion, South Africa’s incursions into Angola were still secret. Wasn’t that just a nominal press blackout? Surely word got round and people talked, right?
But that all changed while you were still out there.
How did you get your orders?
How did you achieve that?
“One of our guys running for cover from a white-phosphorous bomb. That shit is lethal and basically banned under most Geneva Convention regulations on warfare these days.”
Were you as good as your reputation?
Did you think it was weird that your colleagues were black men fighting to preserve the interests of a system that treated them as second-class citizens?
When you weren’t on a tour of duty, you had a base up in Namibia’s Caprivi Strip. What was that like?
“32 Battalion soldiers fully loaded out in the Angolan bush.” The Cubans were also fighting with the MPLA. Did you run up against them?
Did you interrogate him?
Do you still keep in touch with any of your former comrades?
Was he involved with the abortive coup in Equatorial Guinea?
Were you able to send him or the other prisoners any provisions during that time?
“After a month out in the bush all weapons would be checked and stored away. You can see how much weight we’d lose while on operations.” The reputation of 32 Battalion has cleared the way for ex-members to make a great living as private soldiers.
Were you ever tempted to do personal security when you left the army?
You must have had some contact with Executive Outcomes, who are probably the world’s best-known private army.
Does the ANC government’s desire to clear out Pomfret have something to do with 32’s reputation as mercenaries?
Do you think the ANC shutting down 32 in 1993 was also partly out of spite for the fact that the Angolans were seen as turncoats to black nationalism?
South Africans use the term “bossies” to describe the sort of post-traumatic stress breakdowns that afflict the generation who came back from the Border War. Is this something you’ve experienced?
“We always made time to win over the hearts and minds of the Angolan population, who would share vital information and offer their pits as our only source of water.”
“This is 32 Battalion relaxing in between operations on the banks of the Okavango River.”
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Gary Swardt: What was the ethnic makeup of the group?
When you started in 32 Battalion, South Africa’s incursions into Angola were still secret. Wasn’t that just a nominal press blackout? Surely word got round and people talked, right?
How did you get your orders?
How did you achieve that?
Did you think it was weird that your colleagues were black men fighting to preserve the interests of a system that treated them as second-class citizens?
“32 Battalion soldiers fully loaded out in the Angolan bush.” The Cubans were also fighting with the MPLA. Did you run up against them?
Do you still keep in touch with any of your former comrades?
Was he involved with the abortive coup in Equatorial Guinea?
“After a month out in the bush all weapons would be checked and stored away. You can see how much weight we’d lose while on operations.” The reputation of 32 Battalion has cleared the way for ex-members to make a great living as private soldiers.
You must have had some contact with Executive Outcomes, who are probably the world’s best-known private army.
Does the ANC government’s desire to clear out Pomfret have something to do with 32’s reputation as mercenaries?
South Africans use the term “bossies” to describe the sort of post-traumatic stress breakdowns that afflict the generation who came back from the Border War. Is this something you’ve experienced?
“We always made time to win over the hearts and minds of the Angolan population, who would share vital information and offer their pits as our only source of water.”
“This is 32 Battalion relaxing in between operations on the banks of the Okavango River.”